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Monday, April 25, 2011

Mets could choose winning bidder of minority stake sale in a couple of weeks

The Mets are a few weeks from choosing a winning bidder for its minority stake sale, The New York Post reported Saturday.

Several suitors were conducting extensive due diligence, a source close to the Mets said.

The Major League Baseball's owners' meeting was scheduled for May 12, and commissioner Bud Selig would likely be very relieved if the Mets' situation were resolved by that time.

MLB's recent takeover of the cash-strapped Los Angeles Dodgers raised questions on why it was not doing the same with the Mets.

Team owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz were not letting all eight suitors from the second round of the auction see the team's full financials, which is what would typically happen at this stage in an auction.

These suitors, as a result, would likely not be able to make a binding offer in a few weeks should the Mets' preferred bidders fall through, sources said.

Sources close to some suitors suspect that the Mets' auction may not be going as well as advertised, although the Mets maintain that it was.

Suitors who made it past the first round include: former Glencore commodity trader Ray Bartoszek; hedge fund honcho Steve Cohen; a group led by Steve Starker, co-founder of trading firm BTIG; and hedge fund manager Anthony Scaramucci.